c/baking-fails-and-wins

I had to pick between butter and shortening for my pie crust

My grandma always used shortening but I wanted a flakier crust. Tried butter only and it tasted great but the dough was a mess to work with, stuck everywhere. Then I did half and half with 2 tablespoons of ice water and it came out perfect, flaky layers and easy to roll. Has anyone else found a good ratio for mixing fats?

I think fresh yeast beats dry yeast for bread... fight me

I've been baking bread for about 2 years now, mostly sourdough and simple loaves. Everyone online swears by active dry or instant yeast, saying it's more reliable and lasts longer. But I grabbed a block of fresh yeast from the fridge section at my local grocery store 3 months ago, and I'm never going back. The rise on my sandwich bread was way more consistent, and the crust had this deeper golden color I couldn't get with dry packets. Plus the dough felt softer and easier to work with, almost like it was alive in a different way. I know fresh yeast doesn't keep as long, but I just split the block into 1 ounce portions and freeze them. Has anyone else tried switching and noticed a real difference in texture or just me?

My grandma's carrot cake recipe got me roasted by a bakery owner in Portland

I finally realized I was kneading bread all wrong for 10 years

I always kneaded on a floured counter like my grandma did, but my loaves came out dense every time. Last month I watched a video where the baker just wet her hands instead of adding flour, and suddenly my dough actually rose. Anybody else have a basic technique they messed up forever?

The day I realized I'd been creaming butter wrong for a decade

I was making my mom's Christmas sugar cookies for the 12th year in a row and they still came out flat. My sister, who never bakes, watched me dump cold butter straight from the fridge into the mixer and just said 'you know that's not how that works, right?'. Turns out letting it sit out for 30 minutes first makes a huge difference. Has anyone else had a basic technique just click way later than it should have?

My 37th attempt at sourdough finally gave me a decent crumb

Honestly I thought I'd never hit a loaf that didn't look like a brick, but last Tuesday it actually opened up with nice holes. Has anyone else kept a tally of failed loaves before one finally worked?

I finally chose between butter and shortening for pie crust

My grandma always used shortening but my friend swears by butter. I made two pies side by side last Thanksgiving to settle it once and for all. The butter one tasted way better but the shortening one held its shape perfectly after 2 hours on the counter. Now I do half and half and honestly it's the best of both worlds. Has anyone else had to play referee between two family recipes like that?

Grandma told me to chill the butter before pie crusts and I ignored her for years

I spent 15 years making soggy crusts until I finally froze the butter like she said and my apple pie came out flaky for the first time at Thanksgiving. Who else had a relative give baking advice that took them way too long to actually listen to?

Instant yeast used to scare me, now I'm a convert

I always thought active dry was the only legit way until I tried a recipe from my aunt that called for instant. My focaccia rose in 40 minutes flat and had way better bubbles, totally changed my mind. Anyone else switch teams and never look back?

It took me 8 months to figure out my sourdough starter was too cold

I kept trying to bake sourdough and ended up with these dense, flat bricks every time. I tried different flours, different hydration levels, even switched to filtered water after reading tips online. My kitchen stays around 65 degrees in the winter and I never thought that mattered. Finally a friend came over and pointed out my starter was barely bubbling because it was cold. I moved it near the radiator and within a week I got my first real rise on a loaf. Has anyone else dealt with a temperature issue that took forever to catch?

Had a neighbor scold me over my pie crust at a block party last June

She watched me overwork the dough and said I was squeezing out all the butter chunks that make it flake. Been chilling my butter and handling it less since then, and my last 3 pies actually came out good. Anyone else get unsolicited baking advice from strangers that actually worked?

Tried a cold butter method for pie crust and got a total disaster

I always used room temp butter for pies because that's what my grandma did. Last week I read a blog post saying cold butter makes it flakier so I tried it. The dough was a crumbly mess that wouldn't stick together at all. After 3 tries I finally added ice water a tablespoon at a time and it barely came together. The crust came out tough and greasy instead of flaky like they promised. Has anyone else had cold butter just not work for them?

That week I tried making croissants ruined my whole opinion of puff pastry

I spent 5 days last month doing that whole laminated dough process. Did 3 folds, rested it overnight, the whole deal. First batch came out flat as a pancake because my butter broke through the dough. Second try looked perfect in the oven then collapsed into a greasy mess. I thought homemade croissants would be worth it but after 12 hours of work for 8 sad pastries I'll just stick to the frozen ones from Aldi. Anyone else waste a whole weekend on a baking project that totally flopped?

Vent: My sourdough starter exploded all over my kitchen ceiling

I came home from work yesterday to find my sourdough starter had bubbled out of the jar and somehow shot a glob onto the ceiling. It took me an hour to scrub it off the white paint. My kitchen still smells like a brewery. Has anyone else had a starter go completely rogue on them?

Am I the only one who thinks store bought pie crust is better than homemade?

I was at a bake-off in Denver last Saturday and half the people swore their from-scratch crust fell apart, while the store bought ones held up perfect. Doesn't that defeat the whole point of baking from scratch, or am I just being a snob about it? What do you all think - is convenience worth the trade off?

Spent 6 hours trying to fix a cracked cheesecake before figuring out the water bath trick

Warning: my KitchenAid mixer gear finally gave out after 8 years

I was making a double batch of chocolate chip cookies last Saturday when my mixer started making this grinding noise. Then it just STOPPED mid mix. I thought I burned out the motor but turns out it was a stripped plastic gear inside. I read online that a replacement costs like $20 and takes 30 minutes but I was SO mad because I had to finish mixing by hand with a wooden spoon. My cookies turned out uneven and I lost about an hour of my afternoon. Has anyone here replaced that gear themselves or should I just bite the bullet and take it to a repair shop?

Pie crust tip from a baking blog I read yesterday

I found out that chilling your butter in the freezer for 15 minutes before cutting it into the flour actually makes a way flakier crust. I tried it last night on a test batch and the layers were way more visible. Has anyone else noticed a big difference with frozen vs fridge-cold butter?

PSA: My sister told me my cookies were too flat, so I chilled the dough for 2 hours before baking

She pointed out the butter was too warm before I even started, and now my cookies come out thick and chewy instead of flat disks. Anyone else have a sibling who gives brutally honest baking feedback?

Finally tried the cold butter grating trick for pie crust and it worked way better than I expected

My last 3 pie crusts came out tough and shrunken, but grating the cold butter on a box grater before cutting it in made flakes I actually wanted to show off. Has anyone else found a weird shortcut that just clicks?

Older baker showed me why you should never skip resting dough

I was at a small bakery in Portland last summer and asked the owner why my croissants always spread flat. He didn't say much, just pointed at his dough sitting on the counter for a full 45 minutes before shaping. I had been rushing straight from the mixer to the rolling pin every time. He told me "the gluten needs to settle down or it fights you" and walked off. Has anyone else found that waiting longer before shaping makes a big difference with laminated dough?

Had a perfect baking week last month and it threw me off

I made three things in a row that all turned out great - a lemon loaf, some chocolate chip cookies, and a sourdough loaf. The loaf rose exactly right with that nice ear on top, the cookies were chewy in the middle, and the lemon glaze set without getting grainy. It felt weird because usually I mess up at least one thing per batch, like overmixing or forgetting an ingredient. Has anyone else had a streak like that where you just keep waiting for the other shoe to drop?

Hand mixing vs stand mixer for buttercream - never going back

I spent like 2 years making buttercream with just a hand mixer and a bowl. It always came out fine but took forever and my arm would get tired holding the mixer up. Last week I borrowed my neighbor's stand mixer for a birthday cake and wow what a difference. The texture was way smoother and fluffier because I could let it run for a full 10 minutes without stopping. Plus I could actually do other stuff like prep the cake layers while it mixed. I finally bought my own used one off Facebook marketplace for $40. Has anyone else noticed a big difference between these two methods or is it just me?

Had to pick between butter and shortening for my pie crust, went all-butter and it was a crumbly mess

I was testing crust recipes for a competition at the county fair last month and did a side by side with Crisco versus Kerrygold butter. The butter crust tasted amazing but fell apart when I tried to slice it, two of my pieces just collapsed on the plate. Shortening gave me that flaky hold but zero flavor. Has anyone found a mix that actually works or should I just accept the fails?

Found out my oven runs 25 degrees hot after 5 years of mystery baking fails

I finally bought a cheap oven thermometer from Target for $8 last week. Turns out my oven runs 25 degrees hotter than what I set it to. All those cookies that burned on the bottom and cakes that came out dry make so much sense now. I just adjusted my temps down and baked a perfect batch of banana muffins this morning. Has anyone else discovered a dumb setting or quirk in their oven that explains years of baking problems?